ustxtxb_obs_2005_09_23_50_00012-00000_000.pdf

photo by Steve Satterwhite photo by Steve Satterwhite 12 THE TEXAS OBSERVER SEPTEMBER 23, 2005 ABOVE: Those who wanted to help came to Dallas from as far as Kansas. They came bearing everything from designer shoes to faded dungarees. Wal-Mart sent trucks of water and food. Just the pile of donated teddy bears stood at 3 feet. A well-coifed woman walked through the crowd handing out $100 bills to dazed evacuees. Off in a corner a man sobbed uncontrollably. If anything could begin to assuage the pain, it was the outpouring of compassion from those who came to help. LEFT: Thomas Major credits his dog Tasha with saving his life. He had tried to go back into his house with the floodwaters rising but Tasha grabbed his shirt and dragged him onto the roof of his building. They sat on the roof for five days together. Some neighbors provided him water and dog food. Major ate creamed corn. Finally, the water subsided enough so that he could retrieve an air mattress from his apartment and walk Tasha to safety. She was allowed to accompany him on a bus that deposited them both in Dallas. “Now, I’m just trying to get something to eat and get seven days of funk off me and see what I can do.”